Daniel Johns suffered a debilitating illness four years ago that prevented his band Silverchair from promoting its album Diorama here in the States. That, in part, helps explain why the band hasn't yet fully broken free from its perception here as a bush-league Nirvana knock-off.

That's a pity, because 2002's Diorama and the new Young Modern feature an epic sort of visceral and hooky symphonic pop. Based on the music alone, Johns has done plenty to shed the perception of his band as teenage grunge muppets from Australia, an image established more than a decade ago.

But old tags can be sticky. At least three friends have made quick, disparaging remarks about Silverchair.

These comments have nothing to do with Diorama and Young Modern, and everything to do with Frogstomp, Silverchair's 1995 debut album, which was released during the post-Nevermind ooze of angsty, three-chord grunge. Silverchair's claim during this gold and platinum rush was Tomorrow, a Top 40 single. The band also was notable for its youth at the time: All three members were in their mid-teens.

Johns and Silverchair made two more records before Diorama, which showed an unexpected creative growth. It was ambitiously and meticulously constructed, and featured some collaborations with Van Dyke Parks, a '60s pop icon best known for his work with Brian Wilson.

Parks' nickname for Johns was "young modern." (Ta-da!)

Johns, 28, says the title sounded "interesting and sentimental." More specifically, he thought it helped signify "a fresh start." He means creatively as well as physically. A number of the promo photos of the band for Young Modern show Johns sporting a black eye. He painted it on "more out of a sense of drama and boredom" than any sort of statement about having taken his licks.

Still Johns has, over the past decade, worked through certain preconceptions about his band. More seriously, he also dealt with an eating disorder and a bout of reactive arthritis. The latter left him bed-ridden and unable to play music.

His condition didn't allow for any fresh start with Diorama. "It was such a letdown," Johns says. "To put that much work into something and not being able to do anything with it."

That is not the case with Young Modern. Silverchair — Johns, drummer Ben Gillies and bassist Chris Joannou — is touring the U.S. and will play Meridian tonight. Johns says he's had no recurring pains and "we're actually enjoying ourselves on the road this time."

He's heartened that more attention is being paid to the music than the band's past.

Rather than dialing into Seattle circa 1993, Silverchair's sound has unfolded like a lavish pop-up book. The strings are dramatic rather than bombastic. The choruses are sweeping rather than hammy. The songs — especially the topsy-turvy If You Keep Losing Sleep — often take unexpected and charming twists. Young Modern is built on a nuanced grandiosity that tinkers with expectations.

"We were aware of the scale of the music from the outset," Johns says. "We wanted it to be big, but we didn't want to exploit its melodies."

There are flashes of T. Rex and the Jam, but the music doesn't sound retro or imitative. Opener Young Modern Station even sounds like a Jam song title. Johns concedes the tune was inspired by Paul Weller's band, though "by the time we were done with it, it sounded nothing like the Jam."

Proud as he is of Silverchair's growth, Johns is nevertheless unwilling to cut loose its past. The band still has fans from its breakthrough, and he says Silverchair is in a "comfortable position in America."

"A lot of bands would love to have that kind of success as a hindrance to their career. But the general attitude about the band seems to have shifted. We're not U2 or anything, but people seem to be reappraising the band. And that opens the door to the next thing."